The Hacker's Encyclopedia 1998/hackers_encyclopedia.iso/zines/uxu/uxu_265.txt

Text File | 2003-06-11 | 10.7 KB | 231 lines

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                         Underground eXperts United

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         [  DMV & 2D Bar Codes  ]                      [  By Mario  ]


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                                DMV & 2D Bar Codes
                                     by Mario


We will soon see yet another Big Brother mechanism in the making.  However
this one,  unlike  the short  lived Clipper chip seems to be a very silent
threat to our valued privacy.  While we may have forseen elements of  this
threat in our previous discussions, we are now on the verge of their cruel
implementation.

There is perhaphs nothing new in the idea  of a "National ID card" to most
of the  veteran Cpunx,  perhaps  only a few of  you haven't heard of this.
Perhaps also few of us  have missed the AT&T commercial  where a kid walks
up to an ATM style kiosk and renews his drivers license.

Many of us are  already  aware of the  evil privacy invading  DMV's, their
disregard for our privacy in giving out  our names and addresses and other
personal information  (at  least  in some states...)    But how many of us
know of the pending merging of virtually all of our records?

Two weeks ago, I attended a presentation for a  2D Bar code  system called
PDF-417 (read Pee Dee Eff Four Seventeen.)  This presentation was aimed at
city level government MIS staff. The presenting company, Symbol Technology
offered a very Big Brotheresque presentation for this bar code.

On the surface, the bar code looks like a 3D random dot pattern stereogram
with a set of ordinary  bar code-looking start and end sequences.  That is
envision a  rectangular bar code whose  center has  been replace by random
dots  leaving the first  two or three  bars on  the left and on  the right
sides.

PDF417 stands for  Portable Data File,  and it quite is.  The presentation
showed  this format can hold upto 11Kbytes of data per bar code.  Each PDF
bar  code can be  stretched into  thin vertically or horizontally oriented
rectangles or  left as a  square.  Several of these can fit on an ID sized
card, i.e. a driver's license.  With a good quality fax (200dpi or better)
they can be sent over a fax.  Further, they are very stable and  resistant
to harm.  Several examples were shown of bar codes with bullet sized holes
in them which were claimed to be readable, as well as a few samples with a
diagonal torn from the lower left end to the top right end.

An 11Kb of data may not seem like a lot, however by balancing the level of
redundant error correction  information  versus stored data and using good
data compression  systems, two of these  PDF417  codes can store plenty of
information, any of it available to  >anyone<  you show your card to... at
least the portions of which are not encrypted.

Most importanly, while Smart Cards are very expensive, PDF417's  are dirt
cheap  to print.  Any good quality 24 pin dot matrix printer is certainly
capable of producting ID cards.  A cheap  XT with a network connection, a
decent but cheap printer, perhaps a hand held scanner/polaroid camera and
a card laminator are enough to produce such cards.  On the  other hand, a
smart card  will  require an on board chip  which needs to be encoded and
inserted in the card.


Encryption:

The presentation said that portions of the PDF417's could be encrypted to
hold certain private information to  which  only DMV's  or other entities
would have the key to.  This way, anyone can scan  your card, but some of
your information will be hidden.  Now  whether or not someone breaks into
the DMV's and grabs the private key on the other end will become an issue
which was not presented.

In fact, it seems most of our city government folks are quite in the dark
about encryption. They belive all of it can be broken and do not trust it
which is in a way good for  our  privacy and the lack of theirs. However,
their neglect of strong encryption may cause several problems in terms of
the security  of the  encrypted fields: if  implemented ass backards, and
we know Uncle Sam usually does things ass backwards, don't we? Let us not
forget that  this was only  Symbol Technology's suggestion.   Knowing the
DMV's, there  will probably be no  encrypted data.  Digital Signatures to
protect against forgeries perhaps, but little privacy protection.


Your Mug Shot & John Hancock:

Samples were shown of various test DMV cards in various states containing
digitized pictures,  signatures, as well as standard run of the mill info
such as your full name, address, phone number,  license number, etc.  The
idea  was  that a cop could pull you over (or any other official of state
or bank, or store clerk, etc.) scan your ID card and see  if the  picture
matches the stored picture in the bar code and your face.  Ditto  for the
signature.  In  fact you can expect to  see new ID's sporting these codes
soon since Symbol is "working with all major ID card manufacturers."

This  is not  vaporware, this type of bar codes have been used by the DoD
as ID's.


Welfare Cards:

These will be used for welfare cards.  Wether they will be separate cards
or part of your drivers license wasn't clear by the presentation. You can
bet that they have evangelized  many DMV's and government agencies around
the country with the same speech.

(Fingerprints were also  shown  -  possible  application - match your paw
prints to the ones stored in encrypted form on the bar code using a  card
scanner/finger print scanner  machine  which  also matches them to a neat
database via a network.)



DMV Invitations:

One of the less  interesting  things  was that  your  DMV  invitations to
renew  your  license  would be  sent  on a  postcard  sporting a bar code
without  which they would not allow you to renew your card.  The usual do
not bend,  stape, or spindle shown on punch cards will no longer apply as
these are almost indestructible, and it would be in your interest  to not
harm them.


Buying Guns:

Your  drivers license  will  hold  a  hidden encrypted field to which gun
dealers  will have a  machine that will hold the key to.  By swiping your
card, or inserting your  card in the device, a green light would indicate
that you can infact purchase a gun, a red would indicate you are either a
person  with a past criminal record, or soon enough a political danger...
Supposedly, this will remove the one day wait for hand-guns.  So now the
right to bear arms is linked to your drivers license.


DMV's & Voting:

By '96 all DMV's will be required to have give drivers access to something
called the Motor Voter System.  This will give you the "right" to register
to vote when you renew your license.  We now have a political link between
you and your right to drive... your right to vote.



DMV's & Your Bank:

DMV's will >SELL< your records  to your bank.  Supposedly, they will claim
that this information will be used to protect your bank accounts by giving
your bank your photo, etc. as proof of ID.  Let us not forget that the IRS
is pushing to have full access to your bank accounts.  We  now have a link
between the IRS,  your bank, and your  drivers  license.  You can bet your
credit cards will also be linked in this nasty soup.


DMV's & All Insurance:

Not just drivers  insurance  will be linked to your driver's license, but
your health insurance  as well.  In fact, your  entire family's insurance
will be linked!!!   Their  presenter said "Two full pages of medical info
plus the doctor's name."


Your Car & The Parking Meter:

Should you deserve a parking ticket,  your  windshield will sport a nifty
little PDF417 with all your registration info.  If you happen to have put
too  few  quarters  in the parking meter, not to worry, the parking meter
will  sport  a  PDF417  bar code as well.  A  portable scanner  will grab
your info and the info off the parking meter.  If the scanner has a built
in printer - and they will eventually - you'll get parking tickets within
less than four seconds of a meter maid's time..



This is a really neat technology,  but as an enemy to privacy it is a far
more  insidious  enemy  than clipper was.  WHEN, not IF, these  DMV based
ID's are in place, it will be near impossible to gain much of your valued
privacy.

A National Health Care ID card as we  previously  thought will not be the
future...  If you drive, and very few can live in today's society without
the privlidge of driving (I am one of those few as I rely on the subways)
you  are  already carrying the National ID Card from Big Brother, Inc.

Symbol Technology sees a great boom in PDF417,  but the odd twist is that
while they make scanners,  they are not  selling  them to the government,
nor  are  they offering anything other  than lip service  and evangelism.

They are opening  the  eyes of  sleepy,  DMV drones to the possibility of
Big Brother Hell, and they  are doing  a  good job.  They will eventually
profit from this as their  distributors sell the DMV's scanners and third
party custom written apps for the  DMV's databases... And it does seem as
if the DMV is licking  its ugly lips.  (The  AAMV Association of American
Motor Vehicles  is  the central  hierarchy  for all the  DMV's.  They are
interested in this technology  and it is in use in some states as a pilot
program.)

We have yet another battle on our hands. :-I


       Copyright (C) 1995 by Ray Arachelian, All Rights Reserved.
      Distribution Permitted by any means as long as the text and
      copyright notice are kept intact.


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